08 Sep GMG Launches Industrial Comminution Efficiency (ICE) Sub-Committee

The Industrial Comminution Efficiency (ICE) Working Group was established as one of GMG’s first working groups and is responsible for the publication of three guidelines in 2016. Since then, as the industry has identified a need for a broader mineral processing community, ICE has been re-launched as a sub-committee under the new GMG Mineral Processing Working Group. The ICE sub-committee will continue to develop guidance on methods and best practices related to the energy-intensive process of comminution, which will aim to save mining operations money as well as reduce their ecological footprint. Meanwhile, the Mineral Processing Working Group will look at the topic from a broader perspective, incorporating a wider range of operations into consideration for the development of guidance in this area.

Key priorities for the ICE sub-committee will be to review the guidelines:

• Determining the Bond Efficiency of Industrial Grinding Circuits
• Morrell method for determining comminution circuit specific energy and assessing energy utilization efficiency of existing circuits
• Methods to survey and sample grinding circuits for determining energy efficiency (beginning in 2021)

There is a need for volunteers from across the industry to update and review content and will be an ongoing project of this year and into 2021.

Also a priority is to review the proposed projects:

• Fine Grinding Ore Characterization Basis, a project to develop an open-source laboratory test and specific energy basis that mine owners and design engineers can use to both generate first-pass “generic stirred mill” equipment sizes
• Bond Work Index: Common Reference Material, a project to focus on establishing industry-accepted reference material to align calibration practises.

More proposals coming soon. Stay tuned.

The ICE sub-committee will be holding an upcoming project call to review guideline content.

If you would like to receive a calendar invite, contact us here.

Comminution continues to be an essential area of focus for the industry, especially with increasing social demand for sustainability and environmental responsibility. Along with the revision of guidelines, key objectives will be to define standard methods for quantifying grinding circuit efficiency using grinding power analysis, coordinate a global network of multi-disciplinary and multi-sector professionals with knowledge on comminution efficiency, and enable a centre of knowledge, training, and sharing on the topic.

What else is happening in the Mineral Processing Working Group

• A sub-committee on Process Control is being launched next month
• Project proposals have been received on:
  • Metal Accounting
  • Overall Equipment Effectiveness

If you want to get involved, or if you have colleagues who you think would be interested please contact us here. GMG is an open platform, so everyone is welcome to participate.